1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to an image browsing device for browsing an image stored in an image data source, and more particularly, to an image browsing device having a function of saving a browsed image.
2. Description of the Related Art
An image browsing device for browsing an image stored in an image data source, e.g., a server on a network, such as such as a LAN or the Internet, is often realized by software called a browser or a viewer on a computer, such as a personal computer. Generally, such software enables an image on display to be saved with an arbitrary file name.
For example, in a case of a representative WWW browser, Internet Explorer (registered trademark), operating on Microsoft Windows (registered trademark), which is a representative operating system, upon saving an image loaded from a WWW server and browsed, the image can be saved under an arbitrary file name by putting a mouse pointer on the image, clicking a right mouse button to display a context menu, and selecting “save as (save under a new file name)” in the menu. However, the saved image data is image data per se (coded data, such as of JPEG) loaded from the WWW server and displayed.
Besides, there are varieties of software that enable a displayed image to be recompressed and saved. For example, in a case of Adobe Photoshop (registered trademark), which is a representative retouching software, a displayed image (an image acquired from an image data source, or an image processed from the acquired image) can be recompressed and saved under an arbitrary file name by selecting “save as (save under a new file name)” in the menu.
Software such as explained above is commonly known, and many documents thereabout are distributed.
Commonly, an image is stored or transmitted in a compressed form. As methods for compressing an image, JPEG is widely used for compressing a static image, and MPEG is widely used for compressing a dynamic image. However, as compression methods replacing the above-mentioned methods, JPEG2000 (ISO/IEC FCD 15444-1) and Motion-JPEG2000 (ISO/IEC FCD 15444-3) draw attention (for example, disclosed in nonpatent document 1 authored by Yasuyuki Nomizu, “Next-Generation Image Coding Method JPEG2000”, Triceps Inc., Feb. 13, 2001). Besides, Motion-JPEG2000 treats a dynamic image by regarding each of successive static images as a frame, and each frame conforms to JPEG2000.
For browsing an image by using a common display, not so high an image quality and resolution are required. In loading and browsing an image from a WWW server, etc., on the Internet, there are restrictions on transmission speed. An image of high quality and high resolution requires a relatively long time to be displayed. For these reasons, an image of relatively low quality and resolution is usually loaded and browsed. On the other hand, an image is saved for various purposes. For purposes such as printing, or zooming on a high-definition big screen display, an image of higher quality and higher resolution is desired to be saved.
However, as mentioned above, with a conventional browser or viewer, since displayed image data per se is saved, a quality and a resolution thereof become unsatisfactory, depending on purposes of saving.
If an image of sufficient quality and resolution is loaded and browsed, an image of a quality and a resolution that suit the printing purpose can be saved; however, this largely increases a time for loading the image and a time for displaying the image for browsing, thereby decreasing an image browsing speed. Not all of browsed images are necessarily to be saved, but only a required image may be saved amongst the browsed images; therefore, such decrease in the image browsing speed is not preferable.
Besides, the above-mentioned retouching software and so forth cannot save an image of higher quality and higher resolution than a displayed image.